The invention is related to a laser device with phase front regulation. A laser medium, which is designed for high laser beam power, generates thermal and thermomechanical phase front disturbances. In other words, a disturbance value with respect to the laser beam phase front emanates from the laser medium itself. This leads to poor beam quality. If we focus a laser beam obtained in this way on a distant object, high losses occur, because the necessary intensities are not obtained at the target. This problem affects both the military area of laser weapons and industrial cutting and welding applications. To correct the phase front disturbance caused by the laser medium, adaptive optics is necessary.
US 2009/0028198 A1 describes a laser weapon with phase front regulation. In order to attack an airborne target, a high-power laser beam must penetrate the Earth's atmosphere. In so doing, atmospheric turbulence changes the phase front of the laser beam; this reduces the laser beam quality and thereby the effectiveness of the laser weapon. Phase front regulation regulates the already generated laser beam so that a predetermined phase front is present at the target. A phase front regulating unit, a deformable mirror, is provided for the purpose of modifying the laser beam phase front in such a way that the disturbance value of the atmospheric turbulence is canceled. The phase front regulation uses the same high-power laser beam which is directed at an airborne target. The reflected laser beam is measured with the phase front sensor. The sensor values are evaluated by a phase front controller, in order to generate regulating unit signals for the deformable mirror.
DE 699 19929 T2 and DE 10 2007 049436 B4 concern for additional laser weapons with phase front regulation to compensate for the effects of atmospheric disturbances on the laser beam.
US 2006/0239312 AI concerns the area of optoelectronic telecommunications engineering and makes use of semiconductor lasers with phase front regulation.
US 2010/10117009 A1 concerns a laser installation for semiconductor chip manufacturing.